Junior explorer MTM Critical Minerals (ASX:MTM) has unveiled new ‘broad’ zones of rare earth element (REE)-niobium mineralisation within its Pomme Project in Quebec.
The $9.14 million market capitalisation company uncovered the mineralisation through 4 diamond holes recently completed in the area, with assay results confirming REE and niobium mineralisation in previously untested parts of the Pomme carbonatite complex.
Some of the top results from these 4 holes include 330m @ 0.34% total rare earth oxides (TREO) and 0.02% Nb2O5 from 71.7m, and 468.35m @ 0.29% TREO and 0.06% Nb2O5 from 22.65m, including 74.75m @ 0.47% TREO and 0.06% Nb2O5 from 252m.
The company says the assays confirm that a ‘significant’ portion of the TREO grade comprises high-value magnet REE mineralisation, specifically neodymium and praseodymium.
MTM has now received all outstanding assays from its Pomme diamond drilling program, and the company is modelling the results to plan follow-up work during its next field season at the project.
Shares in MTM have slumped 25% to $0.069 as of 1:15pm following today’s results, although it seems this may have been the result of some investors jumping the gun prior to the release of today’s results.
MTM’s share price dramatically spiked 75% in the final days of 2023 despite the company having released no news over this period.
As such, MTM was hit with an ‘explain yourself’ query from the ASX, to which the company responded that it had received the new diamond assays in mid-December and its management team took the holiday period to analyse the results, which it has now released to the market.
In any case, MTM Managing Director Lachlan Reynolds says the new REE intersections confirm the ‘very large mineralised system’ at Pomme.
“The most recently reported assay results finalise the wide-spaced drilling coverage of the Pomme carbonatite complex. The results confirm that rare earth and niobium mineralisation extends over almost all of the carbonatite target area, in excess of 2km.”
“The results confirm that rare earth and niobium mineralisation extends over almost all of the carbonatite target area, in excess of 2km”
Reynolds says the company will use the time over the Canadian winter to compile and assess its Pomme results to outline the highest-priority areas for follow-up work as it plans its 2024 field program.
Alongside Pomme, MTM owns the East Laverton, Mt Monger, and Raventhorpe projects in Western Australia
Write to Joshua Smith at Mining.com.au
Images: MTM Critical Metals
